Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Ben Monder: Day After Day

1

Ben Monder: Day After Day

By

Sign in to view read count
Ben Monder: Day After Day
On Day After Day, Ben Monder explores memories triggered by songs. Over two discs, one solo and the other with bassist Matt Brewer and drummer Ted Poor, the guitarist rouses impressions formed long ago. Just like a certain fragrance can spark the memory of an old lover, songs deep in your brain's hard drive can be recovered. Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins were masters at this, but covering Rodgers and Hammerstein's "The Surrey with the Fringe on Top" from the 1943 musical Oklahoma!, as they did, can't be expected to do much for baby boom and post-baby boom generations.

Monder (b. 1962) has the key to unlock those memories. Songs that may have once been an earworm, or an involuntary musical image stuck on repetition like David Gate's "The Guitar Man" written for his group Bread in 1972, are reinstalled and a song you hadn't thought about for decades is reanimated. For the most part, we aren't talking The Great American Songbook here. With covers of "Galveston," a hit for Glen Campbell, Fleetwood Mac's "Dust," and Bob Dylan's "Just Like A Woman," this is more like the pop hall of fame's memory unit.

What Monder has going for him is that memories are never the same. We continually rewrite and rewrite, changing them unconsciously. Maybe that's why covers by an improvising jazz guitarist are so appealing.

Track Listing

Disc One: Dreamsville; Emily; O Sacrum Convivium; My One And Only Love; The Windows Of The World; Never Let Me Go; The Midnight Sun Will Never Set. Disc Two: Galveston; Dust; Long, Long, Long; The Guitar Man; Goldfinger; Only Yesterday; Just Like A Woman, Day After Day.

Personnel

Ben Monder
guitar

Ben Monder: electric and acoustic guitar; Matt Brewer: electric and acoustic bass; Ted Poor: drums.

Album information

Title: Day After Day | Year Released: 2019 | Record Label: Sunnyside Records

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Sensual
Rachel Z
Over and Over
Tony Monaco Trio
Love Is Passing Thru
Roberto Magris

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.